Hylians of the Future
by Lysia
Summary: Link is sent to the year 2000! Not only must he try and fit into a modern world, he is also on a mission to save it. This is my first fanfic ever, so please R&R! (21/9/01 A few minor changes made)
1. Default Chapter

HYLIANS OF THE FUTURE - by Lysia  
  
CHAPTER ONE - The Big Mistake  
  
Link remembered handing the Ocarina of Time to Princess Zelda. The next thing he   
knew, he was standing here now, in front of the pedestal in the Temple of Time.   
  
"Goodbye!"   
  
Link looked up and saw Navi the fairy fly up and away, out of the window. He   
couldn't say that he was exactly sorry to see her go. She had helped him once or   
twice, but most of the time she had annoyed him, by flying in his face all the   
time and yelling at him. Link suddenly couldn't believe that it was finally all   
over. Ganondorf was gone for good, and Link could now return to his home in the   
Kokiri Forest and live a normal life, and grow up properly. He took a step   
backwards and nearly fell over. He wasn't used to his childish body again. That   
was the most annoying part about traveling through time; one second you were an   
adult, the next you were a child again. Well now he wouldn't have to do it   
anymore. Hero of Time or not, Link wanted to live a normal life for a while. He   
turned around to leave Hyrule Castle Town.  
  
As Link walked through the town market, once again bustling with life like   
nothing had ever happened, he thought of Princess Zelda. He really wanted to see   
her again. He walked down the ally until he reached the gate, but was confronted   
by a tall, strong looking guard.   
  
"Whoa there kid," he said. "Where do you think you're going?"  
  
"The castle," Link replied, "To see Zelda."  
  
The guard roared with laughter. "Nice try. But what makes you think that the   
princess would want to see a stupid little kid like you?"   
  
Link felt frustrated because the guard would never know what he and Zelda had   
stopped from happening. If it weren't for them, the guard would have probably   
been nothing more than a zombie like ReDead, stuck in a ruined and deserted   
world that was ruled by evil.  
  
"It's okay Kel," a female voice called out to the guard. "He's a friend. You can   
let him in." Link looked up. It was Zelda! The guard scowled, but at the   
princess' order he opened the gates. Link went in, and followed Zelda through   
the castle grounds and into the courtyard. This time, he didn't have to sneak.  
"I knew you'd come again," she said.  
  
They talked for a long time, mainly about what had happened.  
  
"So is he really gone?" asked Link, trying to convince himself.  
  
"Yes, together with the other Sages I sealed him away forever in the evil realm.   
You were there, remember!"  
  
"I know, but it's hard to get used to the fact that he really is gone."  
  
"It's a good thing to get used to!"  
  
After some more time, it began to grow dark.  
  
"I really should be going," said Link. "Time to get back home, and back to my   
real life."  
  
"This is your real life," said Zelda. "Everything that happens to you and what   
you do. It is your Destiny."  
  
"Yes," Link agreed. "But I meant a normal life."  
  
Zelda giggled. "Just promise me you'll visit a lot. I'll give you a pass so the   
guards won't hassle you anymore."   
  
  
It had now been about a week since Link returned to the forest. He spent   
most of his days messing around with Saria, just enjoying the fact that he had   
nothing to do.   
  
"What happened to your fairy?" asked Saria. "One day you have a fairy, and the   
next she's gone."   
  
Link laughed. If only he had had to put up with Navi for just one short day!   
"Nothing, maybe she didn't like me," he joked. "After all, I'm not Kokiri." He   
was, after all, Hylian.  
  
"No, I bet that you smelled too much and she didn't like it," replied Saria.   
  
Link picked up a handful of grass and threw it at her. She jumped up and picked   
up a flask of water. "You'll pay for that Link!" she yelled and threw the water   
at him. Link ducked out of the way just in time. After dodging rocks and all   
sorts of magic attacks, Link's reflexes had improved greatly. "Not fair!" yelled   
Saria.   
  
  
At the same time that Link was doing nothing, Zelda had been working hard.   
She was preparing to seal the Door of Time permanently, so that Ganondorf would   
never be able to escape. It didn't matter that the door could never be opened   
again, because Ganondorf was far too dangerous a force to be let loose. She took   
the Sages' medallions and arranged them in a circle on her bed, around the   
Ocarina of Time. The ocarina began to glow softly, and a picture appeared. Zelda   
gazed into it, and found that she saw into the evil void that held Ganondorf.   
Only it was empty.  
  
"Uh-oh," she whispered and began to panic. What had happened to Ganondorf? Where   
was he? She ran through the castle and into the library. After searching in   
frustration for several minutes she found what she was looking for, and pulled   
the Book of Magic down off a shelf. Zelda nearly dropped the Book, for it was so   
heavy, and it took her some time to heave it back into her chamber. She flipped   
through the battered pages carefully until she came to the chapter about the   
Ocarina of Time. This looked perfect, it was called the "Searching Spell" and it   
allowed you to search through time to find a particular item or person.   
Again, Zelda ran through the castle and out into the market. She wasn't allowed   
to go out there often, and so nobody recognized her as the princess. It also   
didn't hurt that she'd taken off her royal garments and decorations.   
In a back alley she found what she was looking for, a potion shop, and bought   
several bottles of what was called Green Potion, which contained magic. Carrying   
the bottles back to the castle also slowed her down because she didn't want the   
bottles to clang against each other and break.  
  
When she arrived back in her chamber, she drank a bottle of the magic   
potion. It tasted disgusting, and Zelda wished that she had been naturally born   
with magic powers. Still, she was now able to perform the "Searching Spell,"   
which involved playing a strange song on the Ocarina.  
  
The picture in the Ocarina of Time changed, and Zelda literally watched every   
realm speed throughout time. Still, there was no sign of Ganondorf, until   
finally the pictures slowed down and finally stopped. Zelda was shocked by what   
she saw. She had sent Ganondorf back into the real world, only it was several   
centuries into the future. She was not sure exactly, but she knew there was one   
thing she definitely had to do.  
  
"I have to find Link," she said.   
  
  
Early one morning, Link felt someone shaking him. It was still early, and   
he was half-asleep.   
  
"Mmm," he groaned.  
  
"Wake up!" said Saria. This had no effect on the sleeping boy, so Saria leaned   
over and pulled the pillow out from under his head.  
  
"Hey!" exclaimed Link, sitting up after a moment. "Why'd you wake me up so   
early?"  
  
"There's someone here to see you," Saria replied. She didn't look that happy.   
Link wondered who would want to visit him in the forest. He pulled his tunic   
over his head and put his boots on, grabbing his cap as he ran out the door   
after his friend.  
  
  
Waiting at the foot of the ladder was Mido.  
  
"Link, do you know that Kokiri are not supposed to leave the forest?" he said   
with a stern tone in this voice.  
  
"But I'm not one of you, remember," replied Link, quoting Mido's teasing back at   
him.  
  
"That's true," Mido agreed. "But that's not my point. Why do outsiders know   
where this forest is then?"  
  
"Outsiders?" asked Link.  
  
"There is a girl waiting just outside the entrance and she asked for you.   
Obviously she knows where the forest is, and you must have told her."  
  
"Have you ever seen me leave the forest?" asked Link.   
  
"No but you were going to, I remember, right after you killed the Deku Tree you   
said you were going to the castle, whatever that is. Maybe I didn't notice you   
go."   
  
Link decided then to ignore Mido, so he started walking towards the forest   
entrance.   
  
"You traitor!" screamed out Mido after him. "How dare you give away our home!"  
  
  
As Link stepped out of the forest and into Hyrule Field, he saw Zelda   
waiting for him. Standing further away and blending almost into the shadows was   
Impa, Zelda's nursemaid.   
  
"I'm so glad I found you," said Zelda when she saw Link.  
  
"How did you know where to look?" he was curious.   
  
"Oh I have my connections," she replied. "We have a bit of a problem."  
  
"What kind of a problem?"  
  
"Well, there was a bit of a, um, mistake."  
  
Link was worried. "What happened."  
  
"It's Ganondorf," said Zelda. Link felt sick. "Our plan didn't go as we'd   
hoped."  
  
"What's wrong? Did he escape?"   
  
"Kind of. Well, he's free anyway. Just not here."  
  
"Well where is he then?" Link wished Zelda would just tell him exactly what had   
happened and get to the point.  
  
"A couple of hundred years in the future."  
  
"WHAT???" Link thought she might have been joking, but the look on her face told   
him that she wasn't.  
  
"I need your help. As the Hero of Time, you are the only one who can pull the   
Master Sword and use it to travel through time and stop Ganondorf."  
  
Here we go again, thought Link. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. If he   
hadn't done it before, he wouldn't have ever imagined traveling through time was   
even possible. Still, he wondered what the future would be like. He decided that   
it probably couldn't be that much different from now.   
  
Link was going to be in for a big surprise.  



	2. Chapter 2

  
CHAPTER TWO - The Journey of a Lifetime  
  
"You'll need to take this," said Zelda handing over the Ocarina of Time. Earlier she had taught Link a song that he could play when he wanted to return to the present. She had told him that it was a difficult spell to perform, and that he could only play the song once. After that, it would be very hard to return to the future again. He would have to wait until Ganondorf was defeated, however that was going to happen.   
  
"Look," Zelda said. "From what I have seen, Ganondorf is up to his usual tricks, trying to seize control over the world where he is now. When you have killed him or whatever you are going to do, you'll need to bring him back here. Then I will make sure that his spirit is imprisoned for all eternity, and in the right place too."  
  
"Are you sure this is going to work?" Link was a bit nervous because the plan sounded, well, unbelievable.  
  
"It has to," Zelda replied. "It's our only hope. Our world may be safe, but what about the world of our descendants? We can't leave the evil of Ganondorf with them; I would hate to wish that on anybody. And Link, you are probably the only person who knows how to stop him. He will take the future by surprise, and they might not know how to deal with him." Zelda walked through the Door of Time and into the chamber. Link sat down on the stairs and realised the huge responsibility on him. He was used to it, for he had had the weight of saving his own world on his shoulders before, but it was always going to be a hugely daunting thought.  
  
"Okay, we're ready!" called out Zelda. Link stood up and passed through the Door of Time. He walked onto the platform and stared at the Master Sword, a blade that had already helped him through so much.   
  
"The spell is ready," said Zelda. "When you pull that blade out of the pedestal, you will be transported into the exact same time as Ganondorf. You will appear in this exact same spot, however I am not sure what it will look like in the future." She suddenly ran up and gave Link a hug. "Please be careful. I know that you can do it!" She ran back down the stairs. "Whenever you're ready!"  
  
"Okay," Link hesitated. "I'll see you...soon, I guess... I hope." He turned and with hardly any effort he hoisted the sword out of the pedestal. Instantly there was a bright flash of light, which blinded him completely.  
  
  
Ganondorf couldn't believe his luck. After that stupid kid Link had nearly killed him, the Sages mustn't have even been able to trap him away forever. They had merely sent him through time. And he still had the Triforce of Power.  
  
It hadn't taken him very long to establish where he was and regain his power. He was in the future, in a year that they called 2000. Sure, the buildings were different, there were a lot of strange new devices and technology that could do things without magic, but the people were still the same. Speaking of magic, it had died out. Things were very different now, but Ganondorf was still going to rule. He knew that his magic was an advantage, as long as he kept it hidden. Ganondorf used his magic to transform his appearance whenever he went   
out in public because nobody wore armour anymore, they wore blue pants called jeans, and jumpers and suits and shirts. Ganondorf like his new clothes and found them comfortable. Now all he had to do was recruit some people who would help him.   
  
  
Link found himself standing outside on a long slab of concrete that looked a bit like a road. He was holding the Master Sword, and saw that he was back in his adult body again. As he looked around, Link nearly fainted in surprise. The buildings around him were huge, and some rose up high into the sky. Gone were the vast plains of Hyrule Field. The buildings seemed to go on forever. There were tall thin poles everywhere, which had long wires stretched between them.   
Strange noises almost deafened him, but there was one familiar sight. Rising up tall into the distance was a mountain. Link knew it had to be Death Mountain.   
  
Suddenly, he heard a loud, harsh honking noise and looked around. Heading straight for him was a vehicle, however it was not drawn by a horse. Link suddenly realised that it was heading very fast and jumped out of the way just in time. A person leaned out from the side. "WATCH IT YOU FREAK!!!" called out the man, who was wearing the weirdest clothes Link had ever seen. The people of the future must be very rude, he thought, as he walked over to the other side of the road, just in time, because more and more cars rushed past him. Link recalled Zelda's words, "You will appear in this exact same spot, however I am not sure what it will look like in the future." He stared at the black patch of   
concrete and wondered how anyone could have ever gotten rid of the Temple of Time. Things sure were different here.  
  
  
Link found himself standing outside of a large building, and suddenly the sound of a bell rang from inside. After a few more minutes, the doors opened, and many children and teenagers streamed outside. About a dozen stopped and stared at him. Link began to feel uncomfortable, but he didn't know where he should go. He heard laughing, and someone said, "Maybe he's trying to look like Peter Pan!" but Link didn't understand what it meant. His clothes were very   
different, he soon realised from the stares and laughing, and Link decided that he would try and find some like theirs as soon as possible.   
  
  



	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER THREE - The Generation Gap  
  
"You're seventeen years old, and I think that you're old enough to be responsible for your own life, don't you agree?"   
  
"Yes Mrs. Johnson," answered Julia Lindemann in a bored voice. Her teacher continued raving, but Julia didn't really listen. She just wanted to get out of there. Finally the teacher dismissed her, and Julia practically ran out of the school. She was always getting in trouble, but she didn't understand why. It was true that she hated school and had never been any good at it, but sometimes it seemed like the teachers deliberately picked on her. Not that she cared. She wondered why she hadn't already left school by now.  
  
  
Julia hurried over to the bus stop outside the school and sat down. Suddenly, she noticed the strangest person she had ever seen sitting at the opposite end of the seat. His clothes were weird and he was holding a sword. He was staring at the sword with a confused look and Julia began to feel uneasy. Usually she would have laughed at someone like this. She hoped that he wasn't one of those escaped mental patients. It would just be her luck. But as she stared at him, something inside her told her that he wasn't going to hurt her. Maybe he was just going to a costume party. Or maybe he was an actor. But this feeling inside her grew until she felt like she was meant to know him or something.  
  
"Hey," Julia said, trying to start a conversation. He kept staring at the sword for a second and then blinked and looked over at her.  
  
"Oh!" Link didn't realise that someone was sitting next to him. He was too busy trying to work out what he should do and where to find Ganondorf in this strange place.   
  
"Relax," Julia said, trying not to laugh at the way she had frightened him. "What are you up to?"  
  
Link felt a bit unsure of this girl. She was quite pretty, and had a face that reminded him a bit of Saria, except she was much taller and looked older. Suddenly, he remembered the Kokiri Forest and his home, and wondered if he would ever get to go back there again.   
  
"So tell me, where are you from?" Julia tried hard to make conversation with the unanswering Link.  
  
"The forest," Link replied. Now it was Julia's turn to look confused.  
  
"You are Hylian, right?" she asked, "Because you sure look Hylian to me. And trust me, there's no forest around here for miles. None in Hyrule anyway."  
  
"Yes, I'm Hylian, but I've lived in the Kokiri Forest all, well most, of my life."   
  
"So I get it, you were born here, moved to that forest, and now you've just moved back to Hyrule, is that it?" Things started making sense to Julia now.  
  
"No, I've never left Hyrule," Link said. Julia was silent. Maybe this guy really is a nutcase after all, she thought. She glanced down at her watch and hoped that the bus would come soon.  
  
  
They sat in silence for a few minutes.  
  
"Can I ask you something?" Link finally asked.  
  
"Uh, sure," replied Julia.  
  
"Okay, firstly, where can I buy some clothes, you know, like what people here wear," he asked. Julia nearly peed herself laughing.   
  
"Wait," she said, trying to catch her breath. "You're not serious are you? Those clothes you're wearing, they're a joke, right?"  
  
"Where I come from these are normal clothes," Link began to get defensive. He always did when he was embarrassed or felt self-conscious. He was used to being called weird, because his Kokiri tunic was different from the attire of the other Hylians of his time, but he still hated being laughed at.  
  
"Look everyone's staring at me. How am I supposed to get on with my job if no one will help me? I need to just blend in."  
  
Julia had finally calmed down. "Okay stress less. I'll help you. Where do you work?"  
  
"Well it's not that kind of a job," Link answered. He didn't trust this girl yet, and he didn't even know her name. He tried to change the subject.  
  
"Have you heard of someone called Ganondorf?" asked Link, just in case.  
  
"Ganondorf?" repeated Julia. "That reminds me, my name's Julia Lindemann. How rude of me! What's yours?"  
  
"I'm Link, but have you heard of Ganondorf?" Link just wanted to know.  
  
"Link? Hmm, that's different. Oh sorry!" Julia had a habit of being a bit blunt. "I didn't mean it like that, uh, is it short for anything?"   
  
"No. Can you tell me now?"  
  
"I watched this movie once, and there was a guy called Lincoln, and they called him Linc for short."  
  
"Have you heard of Ganondorf?"  
  
"No."  
  
  
Just then the bus pulled up. Julia saw the way that Link's eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw it, especially when he saw people get off. She went to board it, but when she saw Link, something inside told her that she couldn't just leave him there. He was totally clueless.   
  
"Hey Link, follow me," she called out, silently wondering what she was getting herself into. Link stood up and followed Julia's lead by climbing onto the bus. He walked past a fat man dressed in blue sitting up the front, but the man began to yell at him.  
  
"Whoa there son!" The driver suddenly looked twice when he saw Link, who stopped abruptly. "That's seven rupees for the fare," he said.   
  
"You've got to pay," said Julia. Link reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of rupees. He counted out a blue one and two green ones and gave them to the bus driver, who began laughing.  
  
"What kind of joke is this? You call this money? What do you take me for, some kind of idiot? And what's with that outfit?"   
  
Julia saw that the bus driver was getting angry, so she quickly dumped a ten-rupee note into the bus driver's hand and pulled Link into the seat next to her.   
  
The bus driver nearly had a heart attack when he saw the size of the sword strapped to that weird guy's back, but he said nothing and pulled away from the bus stop.  
  
  
Link was startled when the bus started to move, and amazed. How could it move on its own? But as the bus stopped and started, turned sharp corners and sped violently, he began to feel nauseous.   
  
"Gee this bus driver's a lunatic!" commented Julia, unaware of Link's   
discomfort. She began talking to him again, but he didn't really listen.  
"I don't mean to be rude or anything, but what is with your outfit? And that sword and the other stuff you're carrying. It's just that, some people would feel uncomfortable around you. It's not like people just walk around holding swords. It would be like walking into a shopping center with a gun. People don't like it. Oh, hang on! We'll get off here!" Julia suddenly saw the bus stop on a street filled with shops. She grabbed Link and dragged him off, ignoring the look from the bus driver. She saw a men's clothing shop and headed towards it,   
deciding that any clothes were better than the ones Link was wearing. He was paying for it though! The bell on the door tinkled and a tall man walked up to her.   
  
"Can I help you?" he asked. Julia turned around, only to find that she was alone.  
  
"Oh no!" she dashed out of the store and ran back to the bus stop. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Link sitting there. He was holding his stomach and his face had turned a shade of green to match his tunic.  
  
"Hey are you okay?" Julia asked. Link nodded and mumbled, "Fine." Then he suddenly groaned and the next thing Julia knew he had thrown up all over the ground. She turned away, a bit grossed out. Link stood up and walked away from the pile. Julia also got up, eager to get away from it. Link instantly felt better and his face began to get the colour back into it.   
  
"Ha ha, do you get carsick?" she asked, amused that an older guy couldn't handle a short bus ride.  
  
"I'm just not used to that," Link replied.   
  
"What, haven't you ever caught a bus before in your life? What planet are you from?" Link sensed that Julia had no idea he was from the past, and he wondered if he should tell her.   
  
"Anyway," Julia continued. "Let's get you some, normal, clothes."  
  
  
Half an hour later they emerged from the men's clothing shop. Link felt weird in his new clothes. He was wearing a green v-neck jumper and gray baggy pants. He still had his Kokiri boots on, but as a last minute impulse Julia had grabbed a green baseball cap for him. She thought he looked strange without a hat on. Now, she thought, he looked perfect. Not like a weirdo anymore.   
  
"Hey," Link said. "I kind of emptied my stomach before. Now I'm starving. Is there anywhere we can get some food?" Julia looked at her watch. It was quarter to six. Nearly dinner time.  
  
"Uh, yeah sure, what would you like?" she asked.  
  
"Anything, I don't mind," he said. There wasn't much food that Link didn't like. They walked down the street a bit until Julia entered another building. Link read the big sign outside: "McDonalds." He wondered what that had to do with food. In his Hyrule, the signs had always just said, "Food" or "Restaurant" or even the rare "Café." Link followed Julia and they stood behind the counter.   
  
"Hi can I help you?" asked a young girl behind it. Link saw she was wearing a name badge, it said "Zelda." He nearly jumped in surprise. Link felt a little homesick again, but quickly got over it. He thought it was strange that people should have to advertise their names.  
  
"Yeah, I'll have a medium cheeseburger meal with diet coke," said Julia. She turned to Link. "What would you like?" Link didn't know, so Julia just said, "The same."  
  
  
Zelda went away to get the food, while Link couldn't help staring at her. She didn't look much like the Princess Zelda he knew. She had short dark hair and brown eyes. She was also very fast and she soon had the food on a tray.  
  
"I'll pay," said Link.   
  
"Oh no," said Julia, not wanting another scene with Link's strange money. But it was too late; Link had already given her some.   
  
"Wow," said the girl Zelda. She took the money and held it up to the light. "Is it real?"   
  
"Of course it's real," Link didn't understand the fuss that everyone made over his money. The man in the clothing shop had been almost unbearable.  
  
"Well, thank you. Thank you a lot!" Zelda looked excited, while Julia quickly took the tray and sat down.  
  
"Thanks!" she exclaimed to Link. "You made her happy, and we didn't have to pay!"  
  
"What do you mean?" asked Link.  
  
"Well, your money's not real," replied Julia. "And she took it!" She burst out laughing.  
  
"It is where I come from," said Link.   
  
"Anyway, wasn't that girl a weirdo," Julia continued. "I mean, Zelda, what a weird name." She looked at Link and thought that today must be her day for weird people.  
  
"I like it," said Link defensively. Julia laughed some more.  
  
"Of course you would," she said. Link took a bite of his cheeseburger. He was starving, and within seconds it was gone. He also ate his fries and gulped down his drink before Julia had even had half of her burger.   
  
"Mmm that was good," said Link. "Except for that drink; it was gross."  
  
"You're not serious are you?" asked Julia.  
  
"Why not? Can I have some more?"  
  
"It's McDonalds, I mean, it's trash."   
  
"I liked it," said Link. He stood up, and was about to grab his sword. It was a habit and Link never went anywhere without it.  
  
"I'll mind that for you," said Julia, preferring to leave it hidden under the table.  
"Okay then, thanks."  
  



	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER FOUR - The Discovery  
  
Zelda Cartwright looked at her watch. Only half an hour left of her shift and then she could go home. She sighed. Working at McDonalds could be so boring. Serving one customer after another after another...  
  
"Hey Zelda," Kathryn, another McDonalds girl called out, "Tania wants to speak to you in her office." Tanya was the manager, and there were only two reasons she would call you to her office. One was if you had done something really well and were going to get an award. As Zelda wasn't one of Tania's favorites, she highly doubted it. The other reason was if you were in trouble.  
  
  
"You wanted to see me?" Zelda stuck her head in the office door.   
  
"Yes," Tania said, "Come in." Zelda walked in and shut the door.   
  
"I've been counting the money from your drawer, and it's down twenty rupees," the manager began.  
  
"What?" asked Zelda. She tried to be so careful with her cash because she'd made some minor errors in the past.  
  
"It's true. I'm going to have to write you a warning."   
  
Zelda was disappointed. If you got three warnings you were out of there, and she didn't want to be fired. But this was going to be her third. Zelda watched Tania open her file on the computer.  
  
"What's this? You've already got two other warnings, one for being down three rupees and the other for five and a half. Zelda, you can't afford to be careless with your money. We can't afford to have you be careless, I'm sorry Zelda."  
  
"Please, I was so careful. Everything was exact, I swear." Zelda really didn't want to be fired. Her face was burning red, and all she could think about was what everyone would think, her parents, her boyfriend, her friends.  
  
"Well then I wouldn't swear if I was you. If that was your best, then I'm sorry but I'd hate to see you on a careless day. I think that tomorrow's shift is going to be your last. Oh, and one more thing Zelda. What's this in your drawer?" Tania held up the rupees Link had paid with.   
  
"Oh, that's the missing twenty rupees," said Zelda, remembering the amazing money. "But they're actually worth a lot more than that now! It's old money, like, hundreds of years old."   
  
"They look like stupid fake jewels which don't compensate for real money," said Tania getting annoyed. "You can keep them if they're worth so much to you."   
  
Zelda snatched them off the smirking manager.  
  
  
"Hey Zelda can you come and serve," yelled Kathryn. Zelda stuffed the rupees in her pocket and went back out the front. She was annoyed that there was only one person there and thought that Kathryn should have served them. She was so lazy and bossy. Well Zelda had had enough of being bossed around. If she was already fired, then why should she do them any favours now? Instead of stopping at the counter, she prepared to march right on past it and out of the door. Then   
Zelda saw it was the person who had given her the old money before. As she marched past the counter, to the shocked look of Kathryn, she grabbed the guy and pulled him around the corner. He reacted in shock and jumped away from her.  
  
"I only wanted some more food," he said anxiously. "You're not working for   
Ganondorf are you?"  
  
"Do you know what this is?" Zelda asked him, pulling out his money.  
  
"Yeah, it's money." Link was getting even more annoyed that everyone was making a fuss over it.  
  
"Yeah but do you know what's so special about it?" Link just stood there looking confused.  
  
"Well I'll tell you," Zelda continued. "Firstly, it is responsible for getting me fired! So there'd better be a good reason for you to be carrying this sort of money with you. It's worth a fortune!"  
  
Link suddenly realised that of course, it was hundreds of years old now.  
  
"It's worth a fortune," Zelda repeated. But there was something else about the age of the money that caught her attention. She looked up for a second to see Tania the manager hurrying after her, closely followed by Kathryn.   
  
"Zelda," she yelled angrily, "I told you that tomorrow is your last shift. What in Hyrule do you think you're doing now?"  
  
Zelda grabbed Link's arm and led him out the store and down the street. Her emotions were running high, and suddenly all she could do was laugh.  
  
"What does she think she's going to do, fire me?"  
  
  
Julia sat with her back to all the commotion occurring out the front. She wondered why Link had been gone for so long, and looked at her watch. The time was six thirty.  
  
"Oh no!" she exclaimed. She lived with her strict old aunt who had set a curfew of six thirty on school nights. It was already six thirty now, and she knew that she'd never be allowed out again if she wasn't home as soon as possible. Usually Julia ignored most rules, however her aunt would literally lock her in. It was worse than being in prison. Without thinking, Julia dashed out of the store.  
  
"Bye!" she yelled.   
  
  
As Zelda's laughter turned to tears, Link saw Julia sprint out of the store and off down the street. "Hey!" he exclaimed. Julia was the only person he knew in this new world, and he began to feel lost again. While Zelda calmed down from her crying, Link took a few deep breaths and tried to focus on what he was supposed to do here.  
  
"Uh...Zelda?" he said. She looked up. "Oh, the name right? My parents are really old fashioned."  
  
"Oh. Well anyway, I'm Link," he realised he hadn't introduced himself. Back in his time, everyone introduced themselves, and Link had often been called rude for rushing through a town and not doing so.   
  
"Okay Link, what's up?"  
  
"Julia, the person I came here with, is gone. I'm kind of new around here and she was showing me around."  
  
"Well guess what? I don't have a job, so I'll be your new tour guide. Do you want to go for a walk?" Zelda said. She was still feeling a bit embarrassed about being fired.  
  
"Sure," replied Link. He stood up, grabbing his sword and the bag with his clothes in it. A couple of people around gave him weird stares, and Link waited for Zelda's reaction. She didn't say anything about the sword or look any different, but what Link didn't know was that the sword added to Zelda's suspicion about the old money.   
  
  
It was already almost dark outside, and Zelda headed down a long and busy street. Link felt uncomfortable because he didn't really know what to say to her, but she started talking.  
  
"So you're new to Hyrule?" she asked.   
  
"Well, yes, but not exactly," Link replied.   
  
They kept walking and turned down another street, and then down another. They passed by an old man who was out walking his dog. Zelda recognized him because she'd seen him around sometimes. He usually walked his dog every night. Against Hylian regulations, the dog, which was a particularly large pit bull terrier, was off its lead. When it saw Link and Zelda, it began to bark and growl. Link tightened his grip on the sword he was holding, and kept walking.  
  
"Stop it Mossie!" the man yelled at his dog. "Bad boy!"   
  
Mossie ignored his owner and began to run towards Zelda and Link.   
  
"Just ignore it and keep walking," Zelda whispered, however the dog ran up and bit Link hard on the leg. Link spun around and instantly decapitated the dog. It was his natural reaction because he assumed that anything that attacked him must be one of Ganondorf's minions.   
  
"MOSSIE!" screamed the old man running up to the corpse.  
  
"Link!" exclaimed Zelda in surprise. Link didn't understand what was wrong. The dog had attacked him. It was only natural to kill it. Zelda dragged Link along the road until they were away from the old man, who had begun to yell things at them.  
  
"Link" said Zelda sternly. "I don't know where you come from, but you can't just go around killing things around here." Although she tried to sound strict, she really wasn't worried. She knew that Link wasn't intentionally going to hurt anyone, especially if he was who she thought he was.  
  
  
Zelda stopped outside a house that looked a lot different from one Link had ever seen before. It was also a lot bigger.  
  
"This is my house," Zelda said. "I guess you can come in." Link followed her in, and was amazed by what he saw. Instead of candles, there were glowing orbs on the roof lighting the room. The walls were not made of wood or stone, it was a smooth white plaster, on which where hung hundreds of different objects.  
  
"I told you my parents were old fashioned," Zelda explained. "They love to collect everything from the past." On the walls and shelves were many different items, some that even Link recognized. However there was one item that caught Link's attention. Zelda saw him looking at it.  
  
"This is my dad's pride and joy," she said. "It's an ancient Hylian shield. Have you ever seen one before?" Zelda turned to look at Link. He couldn't hide his surprise.  
  
"Of course," he replied. Zelda looked serious, and went over to a shelf on which were hundreds of books. She pulled out a particularly old, worn out one and began flipping through the pages. Finally she stopped and showed Link the page.   
  
"Do you know what this is?" she asked, pointing to one of the pictures.  
  
"Yeah, it's the Ocarina of Time," said Link. He unconsciously put his hand in his pocket and felt the Ocarina to make sure it was still there.  
  
"Wow," said Zelda. "You seem to know your history." Or maybe it's more than that, she added silently. She turned back to the bookcase and found another book her parents owned. It was a book of legends, which was about the ancient races that used to inhabit Hyrule. As a girl, these legends had been Zelda's bedtime stories, but she wanted to have the exact details.   
  
"So Link, where exactly are you from?" she asked.  
  
"The Kokiri Forest," he replied, just like he had answered Julia. Zelda looked in the book, and yes there was meant to be a Kokiri Forest. However, it was obvious that Link was Hylian like her, and Zelda had to be sure of her suspicion.  
  
"But you're not a Kokiri," she said.  
  
"Well, no, but I lived there as a child," he said. "My parents died, and my mother left me there to be brought up." Link felt funny giving his details to a stranger, even if her name was Zelda.  
  
"I'm so sorry," she said, unaware of Link's tragic history.  
  
"Don't be, it's not your fault." This was Link's usual answer whenever people said the felt sorry for him. He hated being the centre of pity.  
  
"Okay. Hey, does my name remind you of anything?" she asked.  
  
"Well, I do know someone else called Zelda."  
  
"Really? It's not a common name and I've never met anyone else with it. Who is she?"  
  
"Um, do you know what a princess is?" he asked.  
  
"Of course. We've got two, Princesses Deidre and Romi of Hyrule." Zelda stopped and thought for a second. She'd been named after Queen Zelda of Hyrule who had reigned many many years ago. Hundreds of years ago. According to the legends, Queen Zelda had only been a girl when the fabled King of Evil had tormented the land, which would have made her a princess back then. It was alleged that the prophet Ingo of Lon Lon Ranch had said that the King of Evil would appear in the future, and that the Hero of Time would be sent after him. Zelda knew the legend   
well.  
  
"Can I see it?" Zelda asked carefully, trying to sound casual, but with ulterior motives.  
  
"See what?" asked Link, who was getting confused by not only so many questions, but also Zelda's silence at times.  
  
"The Ocarina."   
  
Link immediately pulled it out into the open, but then stopped. How did she know he had it? Slowly he handed it over to her, which was exactly what Zelda had hoped would happen. She looked at it in amazement.  
  
"It's true," she said.  
  
"What is?" Link asked.  
  
"You're him. You're the Hero of Time," she replied. Link was taken aback. He had no idea how she had guessed. Zelda grabbed his right arm and pulled up the sleeve. On the back of his right hand was a mark. The mark of the Triforce.   
  
"Wow," she said. She looked up at Link's face and noted the surprised look.  
  
"Are you wondering how I know all this?" she asked. Link nodded.  
  
"You're famous," Zelda began. "Although maybe not that much anymore. Not that many people believe in the Legend anymore."  
  
"What Legend?" asked Link.  
  
"It was know as the Legend of Zelda, but not after me of course! I was named after a Queen, the Zelda I think you know, and the Zelda of the legend. Well, during her reign a great many events occurred in Hyrule. One of them was that a rare Gerudo man left the desert in search of power. He had heard that the sacred Triforce had the power to grant anyone's wishes when they touched it. Only his wishes were evil, and for seven years Hyrule was in a state of chaos. Then along came the Hero of Time, you I guess, who defeated him. But something went wrong   
and the Evil King was sent through time. But I guess that you know all that."  
  
Link gasped in amazement. He was surprised because he had no idea that his life would be told for generations, and that this girl could retell it with such accuracy.  
  
"So does that mean that the King of Evil's here now?" Zelda felt a huge   
adrenaline rush mixed with fear.  
  
"I have no idea," replied Link. "But that's why I'm here."  
  
  
"WOW!" Link and Zelda both turned to face the doorway. A tall, slim man with dark hair and glasses had an excited expression on his face. Zelda slowly pushed the Ocarina of Time under a cushion because she did not want her father to see it. Zelda's dad rushed over to Link, but then bent down and picked up Link's sword.  
  
"Wow!" he said again. "This is unbelievable. The metal work. The design!" He turned to face Link. "This is the best replica of the Master Sword I have ever seen!" he exclaimed.  
  
"Da-ad!" Zelda felt embarrassed by the way her father was acting.  
  
"Oh I'm sorry," he began, turning to Link. "You must be Zelda's friend. Call me Rob."  
  
"I'm Link," Link said.  
  
"That's a great name!" exclaimed Rob. "So Link, where did you get this fine example? How come I've never heard of you before?"  
  
"Dad please, he's my guest," said Zelda.  
  
"Sorry dear," said Rob. He sat down on the couch and picked up the remote, switching the TV on.   
  
"Dad do you mind? We'd like some privacy here," Zelda complained.  
  
"I want to watch the news Zelda," Rob replied. "You'll have to go somewhere else."  
  
"Fine." Zelda stood up. She was about to leave when she saw the way Link was staring at the TV. Poor guy, he had never seen anything like it before.  
  
"Do you want to look at this?" Zelda asked Link. He just nodded and continued staring at the moving, real pictures. Zelda sighed and sat down to watch the news, which she thought was extremely boring. She wanted to find out more about the Hero.  
  
  
"Our first bulletin for tonight involves the upcoming Presidency election. In just one week you will be voting for our 32nd President of Hyrule. However, the poll leader, Mr. Ernest Martin has been found dead in his Kakariko Village home, where he was visiting his family before the election. Police have not yet released an official report, but they are treating the death as suspicious. Martin was a popular man who led the polls at 67 percent. The nearest competitor, Ms. Jessica Reed trails at 28 percent.   
  
King Myori of Hyrule has given newcomer Mr. Ganondorf Dragmire permission to stand in as Martin's replacement, representing the Gerudo Party. He promises not only to honour Martin's policies but also to change Hyrule for the better. So far, this change has not affected Gerudo's standing as clear leader.   
  
This is Susan Eros reporting for channel nine. Back to you, Steve."  
  
"Thank you Susan. There have been many mysterious attacks on..."  
  
  
"That's him!" exclaimed Link jumping up. Both Zelda and Rob looked up at him.  
  
"Who?" they asked in unison.  
  
"The man on that screen, it's Ganondorf!" Link was amazed by the reaction he got from Rob and Zelda. Back in his time, the name Ganondorf brought terror to those who heard it. It was synonymous with evil and destruction.   
  
"Yes, of course it's Ganondorf. He'll be our next President I guarantee. You sound surprised, did you know him?" asked Rob.  
  
"Well kind of," Link replied.  
  
"Good for you. I guess you'll be supporting him then, this Saturday." Link looked at Rob as though he had just suggested they jump off Death Mountain.  
  
"Hey, Dad, can I talk to you later?" asked Zelda. She knew she had something very important to tell him, and just hoped that he'd believe it.  
  
"Sure dear."   
  
"Cool. Link, come with me." Link was shaking slightly, however he was relieved that he had at least seen Ganondorf finally. He followed Zelda into her bedroom.  
  
  
"Is that him?" she asked. "Was that the King of Evil?"  
"Yes, Ganondorf," Link replied. "That's the man I'm supposed to destroy."  
  
  



	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE - The Election  
  
Support for Ganondorf's party was strong. Everything was going just as he'd planned. It had been a stroke of luck when he'd found out that not only could he join the Gerudo party, he could stand in for the recently deceased leader and run for President of Hyrule. The President was a powerful man, he'd found out, even more so than the King. Ganondorf chuckled when he thought about the former leader. Although he wanted to make it look like an accident, he couldn't resist bringing in a Stalfos to do the job.  
  
  
"Sir," Ganondorf's campaign manager Charles came running in. "The final poll has been released. You're all set to win tomorrow!"  
"Wonderful!"  
  
  
Zelda spent the few days before Saturday getting Link accustomed to living in the future. She had told her parents, and after a bit of convincing, they soon knew that he was the real Hero of Time. They were happy let Link stay with them, and he was soon educated with things such as etiquette and how to act, laws, history and other information that may prove useful. One such thing that worried Link was the fact that magic had died out. He knew that Ganondorf was a powerful man, and the only way he'd been able to defeat him last time was by using the magic light arrows of truth and justice.   
  
  
"Julia, I know you're grounded but I need you to do me a favour," her stern old aunt Constance said. "Take this down the street to the mailbox. It's my postal vote for tomorrow's election."  
  
"I'm not to leave the house 'cept for school," Julia quoted back, sick of her aunt.  
  
"Stop being cheeky and do it," Constance yelled. Julia snatched the envelope out of her aunt's hand.  
  
"You've got ten minutes Julia, not a second more!"   
  
Julia didn't want to give her aunt the satisfaction, but she really didn't mind posting the vote. She was desperate to leave the house, and she didn't think it was fair that just because she was home at seven instead of six thirty the other night she should get grounded for a month. Only three days into it, Julia was already going mad. All her aunt wanted to do was act all authoritative over Julia, and she despised it.   
  
She took her time walking down to the post office. As she walked down the main street, Julia was amazed by the way that this election was having an effect on people. Everywhere she looked, posters were plastered onto every imaginable surface, from buses, billboards and even cars. Not to mention the hundreds who wore badges and carried leaflets. Julia didn't really care about politics that much and didn't pay attention, but one particular poster caught her attention because for every opposing party, this one had three times as much advertising.   
It was for the Gerudo party, and everywhere she looked Julia could see the candidate's face. She felt almost as though the posters were watching her and this guy gave her an uneasy feeling. There was something about the look in his eyes...   
  
"Don't be stupid," she told herself. "Of course it's not watching you. It's just paper for crying out loud." Julia walked up to the mailbox and posted her aunt's letter, although she was tempted not to and make Constance pay a fine. As she did, a tall skinny man approached her.  
  
"Hi I'm Charles and I was wondering which party you'll be supporting for tomorrow's election?" he asked.  
  
"I'm not really interested in it," Julia answered, turning around. But Charles grabbed her by the shoulder. "Wait!" he said.  
  
"Don't do that!" Julia said, pulling away.  
  
"Look, I just want to let you know that this is very important, even to you. The President is responsible for the whole of Hyrule, and the only person suitable enough for the job is Ganondorf Dragmire. You need to know that. You need to tell people that. "  
  
"Fine, whatever." Julia tuned and began to walk home.  
  
"Wait!" Charles yelled but she ignored him. She felt a bit creeped out by the whole experience.  
  
  
Link woke up early on Saturday morning with an uneasy feeling in his stomach. It was the voting day, and he knew that he would have to try everything in his power to ensure that Ganondorf was not elected. Otherwise disaster would ensue. He got out of his bed on the couch and got a drink of water. The futuristic tap was not a problem for him now, although it did take a bit of getting used to. When he went back to the couch, he was surprised to see Zelda standing in the doorway.  
  
"I knew you'd be awake," she said. "It's time!"  
  
  
"Come on Link, I know you'll do it!" Back in the past, Princess Zelda had been following all the action, watching through a magic glass that she had managed to borrow from the Great Fairy of Wisdom. She was nervous and excited at the same time about Election Day, and she sincerely hoped that Ganondorf would be stopped.   
  
"Zelda are you in there?" A knock at the door inturrupted her. Zelda quickly slid the glass under he bed as the door opened and her father the king entered her room.  
  
"Hi Daddy!" Zelda tried to sound happy and hide her anxiety.  
  
"Hi sweetie. You've been pretty quiet these last few days, and Impa tells me you've been shut in your room. Is something wrong? Are you feeling sick?"  
  
"No, I'm fine," Zelda replied. "I was just... studying."  
  
The king laughed. "Since when do you study? Impa also tells me about the trouble she has calling you indoors to do your study!" He was only joking, but Zelda was too nervous to realise.  
  
"That's not fair! I was only trying to do the right thing. If you want, I'll go outside and never do any study again!"  
  
"Calm down, I didn't mean it. Of course you can do your homework, I have no problem with that." Amused, he turned to leave the room, muttering under his breath, "I wonder how long this will last."  
  
As soon as Zelda heard her dad's footsteps disappear down the hall, she pulled the magic glass back out. She didn't want to miss any of the action. She couldn't. She had to be prepared.  
  
  
"Wow, I've never seen so many people in all my life," Link commented. Zelda Cartwright was scared. "Come on, focus!" she said, telling herself more than Link.  
  
"Okay," Link said. "Isn't Ganondorf coming down here later?"   
  
"Yes, he is as a last minute ditch for more votes," Zelda replied.  
  
"Well why don't we kill him then," Link suggested. He also didn't understand a lot of the slang that people used now.  
  
"No way! It's far too risky. You can't just kill someone and get away with it, remember, Evil King or not. And besides, he'll have all of his bodyguards with him for protection." Zelda was surprised that in only a few days Ganondorf had already gained so many supporters. What she didn't know was that he had been performing a technique of mind control over many of them.  
  
"No, I know what might work," Zelda said. "When you go up to vote, you are given a slip of paper. You then get to put it in the ballot box that you want to vote for, i.e. Gerudo, Zora, Goron, whatever. If we could get to the Gerudo box and steal most of the votes, maybe we could put them in the other boxes. Then when they're tallied, the Evil King wouldn't stand a chance."  
  
"That sounds okay," Link said, although he couldn't see what it had to do with destroying Ganondorf and getting him into the evil realm.  
  
"It's better than nothing," Zelda said. "Now look, you're not 21 yet, are you?"  
  
"No," said Link, after adding seven years to his real age.  
  
"That's okay, you might still be able to get in; you look a bit older. I wouldn't because I'm only 16. But we can try. Once you're in, act like you're taking your time deciding who to vote for. Examine the box and see if you can open it. If you can't you might have to stick your hand in and grab the votes like that. But just don't make it look obvious!"  
  
"Okay." Link was still too naïve to realise how far-fetched the plan sounded.  
  
"I'm going to find a window and see if I can watch." Zelda walked around the corner, and Link felt a bit overwhelmed. There were so many people around, and he had never done anything like this before. There was a long row of tables, and behind each was a long queue. He joined the back of one of them, and after about fifteen minutes of boring waiting, he was at the front. Facing him was a middle-aged woman with huge round glasses, who looked at him expectantly.   
  
"Um, I want to vote," said Link nervously.  
  
"May I see some photo identification please to confirm your age?"  
  
Link didn't know what to do, so he quickly walked away from the table. He had always been very persistent, and he knew he had to try again. He walked out of sight of the first table, and joined the back of another queue. Another twenty minutes later, he was at the front again. This time, the young woman there barely even glanced at him; she just gave him a slip and ushered him inside, as if she just wanted to get it all over with.  
  
  
Link smiled to himself as he entered the ballot room. Several people were already inside casting their votes, and to his dismay Link saw most of them vote for Ganondorf. He felt frustrated because they didn't know what they were doing. Link walked around, pretending to be deciding who to vote for, when really he was looking at the boxes. They were made of hard plastic, and the only door was locked with a huge padlock. Link wondered where the key was hidden, but he didn't see any treasure chests around. Nobody around paid any attention to him, they just cast their votes and left. He hoped that this hand would be big enough to fit, and went up to the box, pretending to vote for Gerudo. Instead, he reached inside and quickly grabbed a huge handful of paper slips and quickly shoved them in his pocket. He then quickly went over, dumped them in the Zora box, and left the room before the security guards on the other end of the cameras even saw what happened.  
  
Zelda was waiting outside for him. "Took you long enough," she said.  
  
"It's done," Link said. "Let's just get out of here."  
  
"The results will be announced on the news tonight. We'll just have to wait until then." Zelda and Link left the premises, completely ignoring the limousine pulling into the carpark.   
  
  
Inside the limousine was Ganondorf, but he didn't ignore the two people who walked past them.  
  
"That boy looks so familiar," he said to himself.  
  
His manager Charles heard. "What was that master?"  
  
"Oh shut up!" Ganondorf couldn't wait to kill this man, if only he wasn't so important to him. He turned around and looked out of the back window. There was something so familiar, the hair that fell into his face, the blue eyes, and the green clothes.  
  
"Link!" Ganondorf exclaimed with realization. What on earth was Link doing here, he wondered. Then he realised that at least Link would be completely powerless in this world, especially without magic. Still, it wouldn't hurt for Ganondorf to get rid of him for several reasons. The first was that Link was obviously here for a reason, that would probably have something to do with the fact that Ganondorf was here too. Secondly, Link was really annoying. And finally, Ganondorf felt that he owed it to himself. Link had beaten him once, and it was   
time to even the score permanently.   
  
"Stop the car," he ordered his chauffeur. The car halted almost immediately.  
  
"Ricardo," Ganondorf addressed one of his bodyguards. "Do you see that kid walking down there?"  
  
"Which one?" Ric could see a few.   
  
"The boy, wearing the green jumper, walking with that girl."  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"He has been getting in way of my plans. I want him... out of the way."   
  
"Sure thing master." Ganondorf had complete mind power over him, and Ric knew exactly what his master wanted without being told. He got out of the car and began following Link and Zelda as they walked back to Zelda's house.  
  
  



	6. Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX - The Results  
  
Julia was staring out the window of their little rented unit in absolute boredom. Her prim aunt Constance was knitting, something which she always nagged Julia to take up. As Julia stared out the window, she saw that weird guy Link she had met a few days ago. He was walking with a girl, and they were laughing and yelling like they were having the time of their lives. Julia felt a pang of envy inside, and wanted to be out there, free, with them. Just at that moment, Constance stood up and went into her bedroom. Julia saw this as her chance. She stood up and grabbed the front door key off the coffee table. She slipped it into the lock, opened the door... and she was free!  
  
  
Trying to look casual, she hurried after Link and the girl, and when she was close enough yelled out, "Hey! Link!" Link turned around in surprise, and didn't notice the man in the dark suit duck behind a bush.   
  
"Hi Julia!" he said happily when he saw who it was.  
  
"What are you up to?" Julia asked.  
  
"Nothing much," Zelda butted in. She didn't want anyone to know about what they had just done. Link saw Julia give Zelda a strange look.   
  
"Julia, this is my friend Zelda," he introduced.  
  
"Oh I remember you!" said Julia. "You're that chick from Macca's." Zelda nodded, not wanting to be reminded of the other night, even though her parents had been completely supportive.  
  
"Anyway," Zelda added. "We were just leaving." She didn't like the look of Julia very much.  
  
"Oh yeah," Link said taking the hint. "Bye."  
  
"Yeah. Bye." Julia tried to hide her anger at being blown off like that. Link and Julia walked off down the street and turned the corner. A few minutes later, another guy in a black suit walked past. Julia didn't want to go home, so she decided to follow Link. Maybe she would find out a bit more about him. She didn't have anything better to do. Keeping them just in sight, Julia followed them down several streets and into an unfamiliar neighborhood, where the houses   
were all huge and snobs and rich people lived. Julia saw the house that Link and Zelda went into, and stood outside it for a while, wondering if it was his house or not. After a while, she noticed something funny. A man in a black suit climbed over a fence and into the front yard. He hid behind a bush, and Julia crept forwards until she could see him again. The man was setting up some sort of sophisticated weapon that had a telescopic view and a laser sight. He pointed it into one of the windows and took aim at the people he saw inside. Julia gasped, not wanting to believe what she saw.  
  
  
Ric was feeling pleased with himself and knew that the master would reward him well for this job he was about to do. He crouched behind a bush and attached the last item to his gun, which was a silencer. Then he looked through the telescope at the two people who were eating in the front room. The boy he saw didn't look very dangerous. However, if the master wanted him dead it must be for a good reason. Ric wondered if he should kill the girl as well, but decided not to. She looked like she'd probably die from the fright that she was about to get. He pointed the laser aim directly onto the boy's head and squeezed the trigger.  
  
  
Zelda was trying to teach Link how to play a board game, but he was having trouble getting the hang of it. When the doorbell rang, Zelda was glad to have an excuse to get up, because her parents weren't home. Link followed her. Zelda opened the door. Standing on the porch was that girl Julia that she had met earlier. Julia was holding onto a man who was either dead or unconscious. Zelda didn't want to find out which.  
  
"Go away," she said. Julia ignored her.   
  
"Link!" she said. "Let me in!"  
  
"Go on," Link urged Zelda. Reluctantly, she opened the door. Link helped Julia haul the body inside. He noticed that there was a huge cut in his head, like he'd been bashed over the head with something hard.  
  
"What the..." Zelda exclaimed in shock.  
  
"Who is this?" Julia asked him directly.  
  
"I don't know. I've never seen him before ever," Link answered truthfully.   
  
"Do you know him?" Julia asked Zelda. She shook her head.   
  
"I don't think I killed him," Julia said, "So we'd better tie him up or   
something." Zelda went over to one of the shelves and found two pairs of old-fashioned shackles. She clipped one pair around the man's feet and the other around his wrists. Then she turned to Julia.  
  
"Why have you just brought a man you tried to kill in here? I hope   
you're not trying to leave the evidence here, you murderer! Are you going to kill us too, hey?"  
  
"I'm not a murderer, he is," Julia said, and searched through the man's pockets, pulling out a wallet. She read out the items she found in there.  
  
"Ricardo Anston, born April the second nineteen sixty three. Licensed as a professional crowd controller and personal security agent. Lives at Lake Hylia Resort." Then she stopped and looked at Link.  
  
"Who are you Link? Why would someone like this want you dead?"   
  
"Dead?!?" Link thought for a moment. He didn't know the man lying on the floor or why he would want to kill him. But then he remembered somebody he knew who would want to kill him.  
  
"Ganondorf!"  
  
"Shut up Link," Zelda said rudely, who still didn't like Julia and she didn't want her to know Link's real identity.  
  
"Ganondorf? You mean the election guy? What about him?" Julia asked.  
  
There was another knock on the door. Zelda went to answer it, and Julia and Link heard her exclaim "Paul! You're finally back!"  
  
"Zelda!" exclaimed a male voice. There followed some loud and sickening kissing noises.  
  
"I've missed you so much!" Zelda went back into the lounge room, followed by a boy who was about Link's height, but much skinnier and with curly black hair and darker skin. Julia thought he looked kind of pathetic, but she didn't say anything. The boy eyed Julia and Link with suspicion."This is my boyfriend Paul!" Zelda introduced, "And Paul, this is Link, and this is Julie."  
  
"Julia," Julia corrected.  
  
"Hi," Paul said.  
  
"Paul's been on holidays," explained Zelda.   
  
"Oh that's nice," said Julia, faking politeness. "Where did you go?"  
  
"Marentos," Paul replied. Link had never heard of that place before.  
Zelda felt a bit uncomfortable because Paul didn't know Link had been staying in her house. She decided that if he asked, she'd say he was a cousin, or maybe a family friend. She turned on the TV to break the silence.  
  
"There's only half an hour until the news comes on," said Zelda. Link felt his stomach twist into knots.   
  
"Ah yes the election, "said Paul. "I had to vote by post." Julia was surprised because he didn't look old enough to vote.  
  
"Who did you vote for?" asked Zelda.  
  
"Reed," Paul replied.  
  
"Of Zora? That's okay, I'm going for her!"  
  
Paul kissed Zelda, and both Julia and Link felt sick. They hated people who were all lovey-dovey all the time, especially in public.  
  
  
Finally the news started. Link held his breath.  
  
"Welcome to tonight's news. Making headlines tonight, more unexplained attacks throughout Hyrule, a local security guard goes missing at the electoral building, and Hyrule's former most wanted man escapes from jail. But first, the results you have all been waiting for. We cross live to our political reporter Susan Eros."  
  
"Thanks Steve. Well the results are in, and it's time to announce the next President of Hyrule. It was a much closer race than we'd anticipated, with a lot more votes than expected going to the Zora Party. However, the leaders all along, the Gerudo Party, just managed to back off the opposition. Ganondorf Dragmire was elected as the next President at just 50 percent, ahead of Jessica Reed who was at 42."  
  
"NO!" yelled Link.  
  
"How can this be?" asked Zelda.  
  
"Zelly dear, I didn't like the guy much, but it's not the end of the world," Paul said. Link didn't agree with him there.  
  
"What can we do now?" asked Zelda.  
  
"Can we talk about this later?" Link didn't want Paul or Julia to get worried, and from what Zelda had told him about them, they'd probably just think that they were crazy.  
  
  
Zelda invited everyone, including Julia, to stay for dinner, although she wished she could talk with Link in private. It was the worst possible timing for Paul to arrive home now. They decided to have fish and chips for tea, which made Link happy because he liked fish. He was a little surprised to see Paul approach him.  
  
"Hey there Link, how's it going? I thought we could leave the ladies alone for a while, and we could go and get dinner, how about it?"  
"Okay," replied Link. He didn't mind fishing. He followed Paul outside to Paul's car, which was an old, red bomb. When Paul opened the door, Link copied him and sat in the passenger seat. The drive to the fish and chip shop only took about ten minutes. Link was used to seeing cars by now, and they didn't surprise him any more, but he still wasn't used to riding in them. Thankfully, Paul was a slow and safe driver, and Link still felt fine when they arrived. No carsickness today.  
  
"You can wait here if you like," said Paul. "I'll only be a second."  
  
"Okay," agreed Link. Paul slammed the door and went into the fish and chip shop. Link amused himself by sitting in the driver's seat and looking at people through the car's rear view mirror. Across the street, there were several parked cars, all different colours. Link also watched the passers by. He particularly noticed one woman who looked almost like a Gerudo. Of course, Zelda had told him   
that no actual Gerudos existed anymore, however, there were people who were part Gerudo.   
  
  
Link noticed a large group of people, all wearing black, approach a black car. They were all men, and they parted and one opened the door to let someone into the car. Link couldn't believe it when he saw it was Ganondorf! The other men got into the car, and it slowly began to pull away from the car park.   
  
"I can't let him get away," said Link, "Now, how does this thing work?" He tried hard to remember what Paul had done. Fortunately, Paul had left the engine running for the air conditioner, and Link moved the weird stick in the middle until it said 'Drive.' He released the handbrake like he'd seen Paul do, and the car began to roll backwards. Link began to get worried, and turned the wheel frantically. Somehow, and to the frustration of other drivers, he managed to get the car straightened out on the road just as it hit the curb. He found that one   
pedal made the car go, and the other stop, so he slammed down the accelerator and began to follow Ganondorf's car. He soon caught up, and managed to stay behind it, trying to decide what to do next.  
  



	7. Chapter 7

CHAPTER SEVEN - The Chase  
  
"Hello?" Zelda picked up the phone which was ringing.  
  
"Zelda, it's me!"  
  
"Paul, what's wrong?" Zelda looked worried. Julia looked up when she heard that.  
  
"Your friend, that's what."  
  
"Link?" Zelda had a bad feeling inside her. "What happened?"  
  
"That thief stole my car!"  
  
"Are you sure? I don't think he exactly knows how to drive."  
  
"Yes he does. I was coming out of the shop, and I heard lots of beeping. I looked up to see him speed off in my car! I'm stuck here! The next bus doesn't come for half an hour."  
  
"Paul, hang tight. I'll call you in a few minutes." Zelda hung up the phone and sat down to think.   
  
"What's happened?" Julia asked.  
  
"I'm not sure," Zelda replied, "But it must have been serious."  
  
"Look," said Julia walking over to sit next to Zelda. "I may hate school, but I'm not stupid. What is up with Link? I know that there's something different about him, and then there was that guy trying to kill him. And do you know what? When I first met him, he was wearing these crazy clothes, and he was carrying a sword. I think you know something you're not telling me."  
  
"Well, okay," Zelda didn't know how to answer, or if she should lie or not. But in her worried state, she needed to tell someone, and she forgot about her initial distrust of Julia. "Did you recognize the clothes he was first wearing?"  
  
"I don't know; they were weird. I thought he was going to a costume party. They looked a bit old fashioned."  
  
"You're right," said Zelda. "That's why he had a sword. Guns weren't around many years ago."  
  
"What are you trying to tell me?" asked Julia.  
  
"Link, well, he's from a different time. He's from the past. And he's here because the new president, Ganondorf Dragmire, is also from the past. They go back a long way. Anyway, basically, Link finished off Ganondorf, however a spell went wrong, and he was sent here. Link is what's known as the Hero of Time, so he was able to travel here. It's heard of in the old legends."  
  
"Are you serious?" Julia almost yelled. Zelda just nodded; it was up to Julia to believe her or not.   
  
"Can you prove it?"  
  
"I don't think so," however Zelda picked up the book she had looked at a few days earlier. She passed it to Julia, who flicked through it for a few minutes. The phone rang again.   
  
"Great," Zelda sighed, getting up and answering. "Hello?"  
  
"Zelda, what are you doing?"  
  
"Paul, we're on our way, just wait at the shops, okay." Zelda hung up again. She went back over to Julia, who had a pale expression on her face.   
  
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think I believe you," she said. "Look." Zelda saw a map of ancient Hyrule. Julia was pointing to a place marked the Kokiri Forest. "This is where he told me he came from, but I hadn't heard of it, and I thought he was crazy."  
  
"Great. Now, can you drive?" Zelda asked her, feeling very apprehensive.  
  
"I'm only seventeen," Julia replied.  
  
"Do you have your learner's permit?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
"And do you feel like breaking the law?"  
  
Julia smiled. "I'm an expert," she answered.  
  
"Great. We're on our way!"  
  
  
"Whoa!" Link yelled, narrowly missing an oncoming car. Whenever a car got in between him and Ganondorf, he crossed over to the wrong side of the road, so that he could overtake. People all around him were beeping and yelling abuse, but it had no effect. Link didn't know the road rules or that what he did was wrong. He wondered if he could make Ganondorf's car crash. On the floor Link found various items, a shoe, a baseball and a drink bottle. He picked up the shoe and threw it at the car, but it totally missed. Link found it hard to drive and throw at the same time. He grabbed the drink bottle and tried again. This time it hit the car, but it just bounced off the side. He tried again with the baseball. This time, it smashed one of the windows. The car swerved for a second, and then began to speed off. Link accelerated harder to keep up with it.  
  
  
Ganondorf was having a drink of champagne to celebrate his good luck. All of a sudden, there was a loud smashing noise, and he was showered with glass.  
  
"What the..." he thundered, turning around to see what had caused it. He couldn't believe his eyes when he saw a small red car following close behind. At the wheel was...Link!  
  
"How on earth!" Ganondorf was amazed. That kid just would not stop.   
  
"William, go faster," Ganondorf instructed his driver. "I want to lose that red car behind us."  
  
"Alrighty Mr. President," William the chauffeur replied. He began to speed up, ignoring speed limits. He knew that with the new President in his car, he could get away with anything.  
  
  
"I need to practice my driving more," said Julia. "But my aunt never takes me!" She giggled. Zelda meanwhile, was too worried to think it was a joke. She definitely didn't like the idea of breaking the law, but it was the only way they could get to Paul and then find Link. Julia wasn't a bad driver, and they didn't attract any attention. They headed down the main road, which was the fastest way to get to the fish and chip shop. As Julia was about to turn off, she was cut off by a speeding police car. Then a large black car sped passed, followed closely by a red car. At the back was another police car.  
  
"That's Paul's car!" yelled Zelda. "Quick, follow them."  
  
Julia drove behind the police car, and had to go way above the speed limit to keep up with them.   
  
"Ganondorf must be in the black car," said Zelda. The convoy of cars sped down the road, and kept growing as more police cars joined in. "That's the only thing that would make Link crazy enough to try driving!"  
  
  
"William, what is that car?" asked Ganondorf, when the police joined in.  
  
"They're police, sir, but they won't worry us. You're the President after all now! They're here to protect you. They'll stop that psycho kid behind us."  
  
Ganondorf laughed. "Excellent!"  
  
They drove on; however, nothing seemed to be happening.  
  
"The police are not doing anything William," Ganondorf complained.  
  
"I know, the traffic's pretty heavy. It must be too dangerous. I can only keep going."  
  
"Well I want him out of the way, the sooner the better. Is our car stronger than his?"   
  
It was William's turn to laugh. "Of course it is! That bomb would crumble like a tin can if it was in an accident."  
  
"Then let's have an accident," Ganondorf muttered under his breath. He used his magic to jam the car's system. When William found he couldn't steer or control his car, he panicked and slammed on the brakes. Ganondorf was only slightly jolted forwards when the car behind them smashed into the back.  
  
  
Julia saw the police car in front suddenly slow down dramatically, but rather than also stop, she managed to quickly steer out the way and pull up next to Paul's crashed car. She and Zelda got out of their car, along with Ganondorf and several policemen. Ganondorf walked over to Paul's car, and laughed at what he saw. Zelda stood there speechless, and Julia ran over to have a look. Link was crushed in his car, either dead or unconscious, and there was a lot of blood. Julia wasn't one to get upset in a situation like this, rather, she got angry.   
  
"You evil man! I know who you are!" she screamed at Ganondorf. She charged at him, and kicked him in the chest. He staggered back, but composed himself quickly.  
  
"You'll have to do a lot more than that to stop me," laughed Ganondorf.  
  
"Hold it right there young lady," Julia found herself confronted by a policewoman, pointing a gun at her. She took a step backwards.   
  
"Stop right now or I'll shoot!"  
  
Julia took a deep breath, and then lunged at Ganondorf. However, instead of actually contacting him, she dropped to the ground and rolled out of the way. The policewoman fired. Her bullet shot through the air. Ganondorf suddenly grew pale.   
  
"No!" he yelled. "Sages! I am not going back to the evil void. No!" Then he fell face down on the ground. One policeman ran over to him and began to administer first aid. Another called an ambulance. Julia ran out the way of the police and over to Link. She grabbed the jammed car door and tugged with all her strength. It finally gave, and she dragged Link out of the car.   
  
"Come on, wake up!" she yelled. There was a major wound on his head, and she took off her jacket and wrapped it around in an attempt to stop the bleeding. Then she noticed an object on the ground that must have fallen out of Link's pocket. She picked it up and quickly threw it at Zelda just before two policeman grabbed her and wrestled her to the ground. As Julia was escorted into a police car, she saw an ambulance pull up. Then she was driven away.  
  



	8. Chapter 8

CHAPTER EIGHT - The Hero of Time  
  
Zelda Cartwright had to wait several days before she heard any news, and what she heard was minimal. Both Link and Ganondorf were in comas, and it was not certain whether or not either of them would recover, although Link's injuries were worse. She'd gotten this out of the newspaper, which portrayed Link as some kind of mentally disturbed wacko and Ganondorf as the fallen hero. They completely failed to mention Julia or Zelda. Her parents advised her to lay low for a few days until the heat had died down, especially as she was involved, however they were completely supportive. Apparently the police wanted her to make a statement for them, but she hadn't been contacted yet. Zelda was dying of curiosity, and wanted to see Link. She also needed to give him something.  
Just before Julia was arrested, she had thrown the Ocarina of Time over to her. For days she had looked up all of her books and information, but it was still a mystery to her. Tentatively, she'd tried playing a few notes, but nothing had happened. When Zelda was a girl, she had played the piano for a few years, and she decided to work out what the notes were on the Ocarina. As she played, she made up little tunes. One was very simple, three notes repeated. As she played, Zelda suddenly seemed to feel the notes coming to her. She closed her eyes and continued playing like her fingers had a mind of their own. She found a certain five notes began to play over and over and over and over, and then she began to slip into a kind of daze...  
  
"Zelda!" Princess Zelda spoke loudly. "Can you hear me?"  
The girl, Zelda, shown in the magic glass looked up, but kept her eyes closed. "Who is this?" she asked.  
"It is Zelda, the Princess of Hyrule and seventh sage. Listen to me carefully for we do not have much time. As you know, Ganondorf, the King of Evil has been injured, however it is not fatal. However, while he is down he must be taken back. Either Link or Julia will need to do this, with the Ocarina and the song that will allow the door between times to be opened."  
"But...but...what is the song...and can I do it?"  
"No, only the Hero of Time can open the door." Zelda felt the magic beginning to weaken.  
"Then why Julia?"  
"She is the descendant of the Hero of Time. She is the Hero, of her time. Take the Ocarina to one of them and you should also get the..."  
At the same time, both Zeldas felt a huge jolt that caused them to weaken. Princess Zelda flopped back on her bed, while Zelda Cartwright braced herself against a chair. It was the magic leaving them that caused this. Zelda Cartwright tried to convince herself that she had not been hallucinating. But could she really have been talking to the legendary Queen Zelda? There was only one way to find out.  
"Dad!" Zelda yelled, running outside to where Rob was polishing his latest acquisition, a one hundred and fifty-year-old table.   
"Yes dear?" replied Rob.  
"Can you drive me to the hospital?"  
"I think you should probably give it a few more days. There's not much going on anyway."  
"Please, I really have to see him. I just have to!"  
"Zelda..."  
"Puh-leeeease!"   
"Oh all right! Really, you sound like you're six, not sixteen dear. But, even at six, you were pretty convincing!"  
"Thanks daddy!"  
  
The fifteen-minute drive to Hyrule District Hospital seemed to take an eternity for Zelda. All she could think about was the vision that she'd had, and if it was really true or not. Finally, Rob dropped his daughter outside of the main entrance.   
"Give me a call when you want to get picked up, or if you get into any trouble, okay?"  
"Yes dad, thank you so much!"  
"Bye dear."   
Zelda didn't even bother watching her dad's little hatchback drive off. Actually, she had been surprised that he hadn't cracked it when she and Julia had driven the sedan after Link, even though it was now in police custody.  
"Just as long as the King of Evil is destroyed... and I get my car back," Rob had said.  
Zelda practically ran down the corridors until she found a nurse's station.  
"Hello can I help you?" asked the nurse, who was wearing a name badge that said Nurse Georgia Mills.  
"Yes, I wanted to visit a friend who is staying here, and I was wondering which room he was in?" asked Zelda politely.  
"Well what's his name?" Nurse Georgia Mills asked.  
"Link... well, just Link," Zelda said.  
Nurse Georgia Mills frowned. "I'll have a look," she said, typing into a computer database. "No, I'm sorry, there's no one here with the first or last name Link," she said after a moment.  
Zelda thought for a second. Of course Link wouldn't have a file, because he wasn't even from here.  
"Well, do you have any John Doe's?" she asked. Nurse Georgia Mills typed again on her computer.  
"Yes, we have two. One is, weird, in room 24B, and the other is in room 19 C. I suggest you try that one, I don't think anyone would be visiting the first."  
"Thank you for your help," Zelda said. Taking the nurse's advice, she tried room 19C first. When she eventually found the room, after much messing around on the elevators, she saw it was full of old men. There was no sign of Link anywhere, but Zelda didn't worry. She decided to try room 24B. This time she took the stairs down to level B, and room 24B was an intensive care ward. It was quite large, and every bed was full. All except one. Zelda gasped in shock when she saw that Ganondorf was lying, unconscious, next to the empty bed. He looked so helpless, attached to several machines, and Zelda wondered how he could possibly be so evil. She heard talking coming from behind her.  
"Wow, Dr. Chandra is a real miracle worker. He really saved this one's life."  
"Oh I know...oh, excuse me miss." Zelda jumped out the way and let two male nurses past. They were wheeling a bed, and in the bed was Link! One of the nurses pushed the empty bed aside, and they wheeled Link right in, next to Ganondorf.  
"This is weird, putting the attacker next to the victim," said one of the nurses.  
"I know, but they need those certain machines to look after them," said the other. "And what can they do to each other? They're both unconscious and this room is monitored at all times."  
"Okay. Now how about a coffee break?" The nurses left the room.  
Zelda slowly walked in, and stood on Link's right, the opposite side from Ganondorf. For several minutes she just stared at Link. He looked peaceful, as though he had no idea what was happening. However, he was still asleep, and he wasn't much help to Zelda like that. She thought again of Julia, and what the Queen had said. "She is the Hero, of her time." Zelda pulled out her mobile, intending to call around until she found out where Julia was. Then she remembered the rule that said you couldn't have a mobile phone turned on in a hospital.  
"Saria."  
Zelda jumped and looked down. Link's face had changed and he now wore a pained expression.   
"Link!" she whispered, leaning over him. "Are you awake?"  
There was no response. Link was breathing heavily as if he was having a horrible nightmare. He spoke again.  
"No, get away from me!" The beeping on his heart rate monitor was going very fast.  
"Link!" said Zelda. Ignoring his injuries, she shook him a little. Immediately, he began to calm down, and Zelda saw his eyelids flicker.  
"Can you hear me?"  
Slowly, Link opened his eyes, but when he saw the comatose Ganondorf lying next to him, he yelled out and nearly fell out of bed.  
"Whoa, calm down," said Zelda. Link looked at her with a confused expression.  
"It's me, Zelda, remember."   
Link continued to stare for a couple more seconds, and then slowly and quietly said, "You're not Zelda."  
"Yes I am," Zelda said indignantly. "But I'm not the Princess that you know. Don't you remember what's happened?"  
Link thought for a while, and finally said, "Yes, I think so. But how long was I unconscious for?"  
"A few days."  
"A few days! Oh no!"  
"It's okay," Zelda comforted. She looked up to see a tall fat nurse standing in the doorway. The nurse was watching them, but when Zelda looked up the nurse turned and spoke to someone unseen down the corridor. Zelda heard the words clearly.  
"He's awake."   
  
Nurse Gwendoline Arnold turned and walked back down the hall to her colleague, Nurse Brenda Hughes. Gwen was a strict, no-nonsense woman who loved to get the job done properly. She tended to think lowly of people who weren't in her tight-knit circle of family, friends and colleagues. This was only a small group. However, this particular afternoon she was in a foul mood. Everything had gone wrong for her, and she was close to breaking point. Despite her usual high standards of work, this afternoon she really couldn't be bothered with anything. As she was supposed to check on the intensive care wards, she did it in a bit of a rush, just looking in at the still patients, and making sure that no emergency alarms were going off. Not that it mattered, because the alarms were also fitted into the nurse's station. As Gwen was about to breeze past the final ward, she had seen something that caused her to stop in her tracks. It was not at all uncommon for visitors to talk to their unconscious friends or family, and she saw a teenage girl doing so. However, the patient was talking back! Gwen had looked twice and saw it had been that anonymous criminal boy.  
"He's awake." Gwen had called down the corridor to the nurse's station.  
"Who?" asked Nurse Brenda Hughes. "The President?"  
"No, the assassin." The two patients had been a source of hundreds of jokes for the nurses who had to look after them.  
"Really? That means that..."  
"Uh huh. I'll get the secure ward ready, and you can contact the police."  
"Okay!" Gwen sighed. Brenda could be so annoying. She got excited at the smallest of jobs, and had a way too overactive imagination. Gwen left her to her phone call.  
  
The two nurses paid no attention to the teenage girl standing idly nearby. Zelda pretended to be looking at a newspaper, however she had overheard everything the nurses were saying. The big fat nurse made her feel uneasy, and so she had followed her. Now the fat nurse had gone and another nurse with frizzy blonde hair was on the phone to the police.  
"Uh, hi," the nurse said. "Can I talk to a Sergeant Morris please?"  
There was a pause and then the nurse spoke again.  
"Hi Sergeant. Guess what? John Doe has woken. We are preparing to move him as we speak... Yes, that's him. Number 41265... Uh huh, an hour? So you'll have the police guide here in an hour?... Okay, I understand it's not safe to keep them in the same room and we'll move him ASAP... Yes... No, he won't be going anywhere. Not in his condition... Okay, thank you. See you later...Bye."  
No sooner had the nurse hung up the phone, Zelda was already back in the ward.  
"Link," she said, almost out of breath. "You'll have to listen to me. The police are coming, and if you're here they'll never let you go. Can you stand up?"  
With some effort, Link pulled himself into a sitting position. His entire body ached, but he swung his legs over the side of the bed and Zelda saw that one of them was encased in a plaster cast.  
"Hey!" Link exclaimed when he saw it, "What's that?"  
"Just a cast. You must have broken your leg. Now hurry."  
Link tried so hard to stand but he couldn't. He felt like all of the strength had been sapped from his body. "I'm sorry," he said. Zelda's mind was running at one hundred miles a minute. In the corner of the room she saw a wheelchair. She grabbed it and pushed it over to the bed.   
"Zelda?"  
"Yeah," Zelda replied, busy with the chair.  
"Why is Ganondorf just, lying there?"  
"He's in a coma. He's badly injured."  
"So this is our chance!"  
"Our chance?" Zelda was puzzled.  
"Don't you see? The whole point of my coming here was to destroy him and take him back to be sealed in the evil void. So while he's down now, I should take my chance. If only I had the Ocarina!"  
Zelda saw the frizzy, blonde haired nurse peer in at them through the window and then leave. She knew that they had to hurry.  
"Here," Zelda said, giving him the small instrument.   
"Wow!" Link exclaimed. He played a few notes.  
"That's lovely," Zelda said, "But we have to get out of here!"  
"I know," said Link. His deep blue eyes met Zelda's dark brown ones. "Zelda... Zelda, thank you so much for all your help. You have no idea how great you've been. If it wasn't for you, my mission wouldn't have even begun."  
"Thank you," Zelda said, touched. "But what are you saying?"  
"It is time," Link said. He hated good-byes, so he raised the Ocarina to his mouth. Then he paused.   
"Can you push my bed closer?"   
Silently, Zelda pushed the portable bed in close so that Link was right near the dormant evil man. Zelda didn't want him to go, not just yet. It all seemed so sudden.  
"One more thing," Link said. "When you see Julia, can you thank her too?"  
"Sure," Zelda croaked. She closed her eyes, and heard the soft, high music fill the air.  
  



	9. Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE - The Aftermath  
  
Police Sergeant Scott Morris drove towards Hyrule District Hospital, along with two young constables. Morris was a short, stocky man in his mid forties. He had wild grey-brown hair and big ears, big even for a Hylian. He had been in the police force for nearly twenty-five years, and his experience made him one of the most trusted members. That was why he had been assigned the President's case. His duty this afternoon was simple, to arrange a police guard and to interview the young man who was speculated to have wanted the President dead. Morris's job was to find out exactly what the motives were.  
Morris had been to the hospital hundreds of times, and he knew exactly where to go. With his two men, he caught a lift up. As they exited, a short teenage girl with dark hair went past and into the elevator. The girl was crying, but Morris knew better than to intrude. Besides, he had an important case on his mind. An enthusiastic, blonde young nurse met him in the corridor.  
"Hi Sergeant!" Morris recognised the voice from the phone. "Just follow me!" The nurse skipped down the corridor, and then stopped suddenly in the doorway.  
"What in the world!" she exclaimed. Morris went to see what the fuss was. The nurse was pointing at two empty beds.  
  
"He's gone," was all Zelda had to say when she got into her father's car. "But it's all over."   
Rob Cartwright understood what she meant however he did not know how sad Zelda felt. The past week or so had been unlike anything else she had ever experienced. She suddenly felt so empty now that Link was gone. He had made a major impact on her. He was so different from anyone she had ever met before, so innocent and yet so courageous. And now it had come to such a sudden end. It all began to hit her, what she had helped prevent happening. Although she almost couldn't believe it, she just pictured the evil king as President, and realised that it was all for the best. She just hoped that this time he had been properly sent to the evil void.  
  
Princess Zelda made sure that there was no room for error. She was prepared for the return of Link, and had the spells ready in an instant. Ganondorf would have a nice surprise when he finally awoke.  
"You're really lucky you know," she said to Link the boy, who was lying in a guest bedroom. "Injuries like that would have usually killed you. If it wasn't for that futuristic medicine..."  
"I know, " interrupted Link, who didn't want to imagine what might have happened.  
"But I think you should rest for a while to be safe. The town doctor has no idea what to make of you. I think he's given up!"   
Link chuckled. He remembered the look of surprise when the doctor had seen the plaster cast, and also the row of stitches that lined his forehead. Even the bandages had perplexed him. It was a look similar to Link's initial surprise when he saw them.  
"It's so weird," Link said. "You know, to know what the future's like."  
Zelda, who had seen the whole thing, agreed.  
"But at least we know it turns out okay," she pointed out.   
"Yeah. Now maybe I can finally get back to normal!"  
"Hey, you're staying here for a few days at least. I'd like to spend some time with you under less, dramatic, circumstances."   
Link agreed. "I like that idea," he said.  
  
THE END  
  



	10. Author's Notes

  
**Author's notes:**

I hope you enjoyed that, it was my first Zelda fanfic ever, and is still one of my personal favorites!!! As soon as my exams finish, I will begin a sequel to this story, so stay tuned! It may be up in a matter of weeks, although I am also making a Zelda webpage, putting my newly learned HTML skills to use (well I might as well use something I learned at uni!!!). 

Previously, this chapter was a 'What happened to the characters' chapter, but I have changed it because I originally wasn't going to make a sequal, until now, when I have a good idea for it! I was going to put this on the end of chapter 9, but I got a new computer, and the old one that has the file for the story is on the other computer, and it doesn't have the internet. 

Thanks for taking the time to read my work! 

Lysia 


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